When it comes to their "How I Spent My Summer Vacation" essays, fewer U.S. schoolchildren will be writing about the baby lion cubs at Winnipeg's Assiniboine Zoo or the spectacular fireworks at Vancouver's Celebration of Light.
A recent study by Statistics Canada reports that travel to Canada in June was at its lowest level in a year. This was mainly due to a slight drop in U.S. visitors making same-day car trips north of the border.
However, early indicators in Manitoba, British Columbia and Ontario suggest that the downturn in American guests, whether caused by a rallying loonie or soaring gas prices, has not significantly impacted summer tourism thanks to an increase in the number of visitors from other countries for the seventh consecutive month.
Linda Whitfield, vice-president of marketing services for Travel Manitoba, says that although tracking reports for the province's high-volume tourism months of July and August are still weeks away from release, preliminary attendance figures and a seven-per-cent increase in total traffic at the Winnipeg Airport denote a prosperous summer.
"We're cautiously optimistic that the 2005 tourism season will be successful," Whitfield says. "Positive indicators include media reports of attendance at major festivals and events that suggest local and near-market tourism is holding its own. For example, the Winnipeg Folk Festival, Manitoba Stampede and the Winnipeg Fringe Festival have reported strong attendance figures."
Ontario's tourism industry, which accounts for 37 per cent of all Canadian tourism revenue and 43 per cent of its visitors, is in a similar holding pattern, with increased overseas entries but fewer U.S. overnight and same-day border crossings compared to 2004.
Close to 6.5 million U.S. border crossings were made into Ontario ports from January to May 2005, down eight per cent from last year.
The U.S. border market is second only to the inter-provincial market as the main stimulator of Ontario's tourism economy (contributing $4.9 billion in 2002), ensuring it remains a high priority for tourism initiatives.
According to the Ontario Tourism Marketing Partnership Corp. (OTMPC), the past few years have been difficult for the industry, compounded by a strong dollar and the fallout from the 2003 SARS outbreak.
"Rebound from the U.S. market is expected to take several years," past OTMPC president and CEO Bill Kenny writes in the organization's Outlook 2005-06. "(The) continuing threat of terrorism and border crossing delays led to an increasing preference (by) U.S. consumers to travel within their own country. Overcoming these barriers will require presenting compelling and unique product offerings."
Next month, OTMPC will hold the first-ever Ontario Tourism Marketing Summit in Niagara Falls, featuring discussions about industry issues.
In the meantime, the group's short- and long-term goals include motivating residents in U.S. border markets to take vacations in Ontario, increase year-round leisure travel and boost the number of trips and expenditures per trip.
"We will continue to develop our tourism brand strategy and reposition by highlighting the best of Ontario experiences," says Kenny.
Tactics include event-based promotions, retail-oriented campaigns, media coverage and e-marketing tactics, as well as promotion of OTMPC's one-year-old consumer magazine, in Ontario, highlighting outdoor adventures, lifestyle destinations and entertainment attractions.
On the West Coast, Tourism BC is also showing a decline in U.S. visitors, down 1.7 per cent to 285,885 in May 2005 compared to the same month last year.
Year-to-date, overall U.S. overnight customs entries added up to 1.02 million, reflecting a 4.4-per-cent decrease.
Asian and European markets are leading international tourism growth in B.C. Customs entries from Asia and the South Pacific increased 2.2 per cent, while year-to-date entries indicated a two-per-cent growth to 295,754.
Year-to-date figures have also been buoyed by more overnight customs entries from Australian and New Zealand travellers as well as a 10.7-per-cent increase to 48,310 in overnight entries from European countries.
"We're pleased to see that Europe and Asia are continuing to lead the growth in 2005," says Olga Ilich, B.C.'s minister of tourism, sports and the arts. "They have become even more important markets and are a key reason for our optimism for the remainder of 2005."
Meanwhile, Statistics Canada reports that same-day entries from the U.S. to Manitoba decreased by 13.1 per cent in the first six months of 2005 (from 134,569 visits in 2004 to 116,942 visits this year), compared to a 10.6-per-cent decline in same-day entries from the U.S. to other provinces within the same period. (U.S. same-day entries to Canada are pegged at 8.1 million in the first six months of this year, compared to 9.07 million in the same period of 2004.)
"This is to be expected, as same-day traffic is more likely to be impacted by the rise in the Canadian dollar and increasing fuel prices than overnight entries," Whitfield says, pointing out that same-day visitors account for only 13 per cent of estimated expenditures by U.S. visitors to Manitoba.
Overnight visitations, which may be on the upswing with this June's numbers comparable to 2004, continue to bring in the bulk of revenue.
In 2003, U.S. visitors accounted for 10 per cent of Manitoba's total visitation. Of these 694,000 American tourists, 53.7 per cent were same-day visitors, while 46.3 per cent stayed one or more nights. The majority of visitors were from North Dakota and Minnesota, where Travel Manitoba continues to direct its marketing.
"Nearby states are targeted for leisure activities, such as golf and beach-going, as well as cultural activities," says Whitfield. "Distant states such as Wisconsin, Michigan and Iowa are some of the prime audiences for campaigns centred around Manitoba's fishing and hunting, as well as nature-based and adventure travel."
Whitfield says that Travel Manitoba is also taking a proactive marketing stance against sliding U.S. visitation numbers through further website development, direct mail, outdoor and print advertising.
"This year's fall campaign will be unveiled in November and will include targeted advertising in Grand Forks and Fargo publications," Whitfield notes. "Campaigns for other sectors such as fishing and hunting, adventure and ecotourism, as well as meetings and conventions are currently being developed for 2006."
(Barbara Chabai can be reached at chabai@businessedge.ca)
